The Office of U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) released a request for comments on several proposed actions included in the final modifications of the Section 301 tariffs. On Sept. 13, USTR finalized several tariff increases on Chinese goods to conclude the statutory four-year review process in which the agency reviews the overall effectiveness of existing Section 301 tariffs and proposes future actions to combat China’s anticompetitive behavior. USTR largely upheld President Biden’s requested modifications, which included a 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles (EV), a 50% tariff on semiconductors, a 50% tariff on solar cells and a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum products, among other changes.
Additionally, USTR proposed several actions to enhance U.S. manufacturing. President Biden requested that USTR temporarily exclude some solar manufacturing equipment from the recent tariff modifications so the agency could determine which equipment is necessary to exclude to support the U.S. supply chain. USTR also proposed instituting a 25% tariff on select tungsten products and a 50% tariff on wafers and polysilicon to protect U.S. dominance in the technology sector. USTR requests that stakeholders explain the extent to which the proposed actions will support U.S. companies and combat China’s growing global influence in critical sectors. The comment period begins Sept. 23 and will close Oct. 22.
